“We were just going to eat.”
“There isn’t enough food,” Casey states, and I just smile.
“No worries, I’m not that hungry,” I lie to him.
Sofia huffs and walks away from me, my arm falling beside me. She steps into the house, stopping beside Casey. “Why would you lie about the food?” Sofia folds her arms over her chest. “You think he’s not going to see the twenty-seven plates of food Grandma sent for me?”
She shakes her head and walks into the house, leaving Casey and me staring at each other. Each of us sizing up the other before Sofia storms back to us and pulls Casey by his arm away from the door so I can walk in. I step into the house, and Casey takes one more look at me before he walks back into the house, leaving me with just Sofia.
“You never called me,” I tell her, and she just shakes her head.
“You would think one would get the message.” I can’t help but chuckle as I wrap an arm around her waist, pulling her to me.
“Oh, I got the message loud and clear,” I inform her and her eyes soften when I lower my mouth to hers. “Now, let’s go before your grandfather plans my murder.”
Sofia throws her head back and laughs. “That happened the minute you kissed me in front of him,” she states, turning to walk into the house but my hand slips into hers. “You are pushing it.” She side-eyes me as we round into the kitchen and I see the plates she was talking about. Casey is standing in the middle of the kitchen, facing us, his phone in his hand. He’s typing like crazy and looks up at us.
His eyes go from us to our hands. “Oh, good, you stayed,” he says sarcastically. “Great.”
“Come and get something to eat.” She pulls me to the kitchen and hands me a plate.
“Thank you,” I reply, grabbing the plate as I pile food onto it. I’m so nervous I have no idea what I’m putting on it, only I need to keep my hands busy.
When Sofia sees me look at her, she points over at the stools. “Go sit.” I nod at her and walk over to the seats and look back at her.
“Where are you sitting?” I ask, knowing I am going to stake my claim as my uncle Matthew says, and the minute I think that, I know I’m going down a one-way street the wrong way.
“At the end,” she says and I pull out the stool next to the end. She comes over and places her plate down next to me, followed by Casey, who pulls out the seat facing us.
“What do you do, Matthew?” he asks, and I remember my uncle telling me about him, so I know he knows exactly what I do.
“I play hockey,” I reply, cutting a piece of chicken fried steak.
“How did you and Sofia meet?” he asks, and again, I know he knows.
“We dated a couple of years ago.”
“Oh, that’s right,” he says like a light bulb just went off in his head, but I know better. “And you dumped her.”
“We broke up.” I swallow down the bile. “Yes.”
“Pops,” Sofia says between clenched teeth, “can we not do this?”
“Fine,” he grunts, and sadly, I know he’s not finished with me. “So how did you two get back to talking?”
I want to groan and hit my head on the island in front of me, but I made my bed and now I have to lie in it, even if I don’t want to. I’m about to lay it all out for him. “We met in town,” Sofia interjects, “ran into each other one night.”
I look over at her, and she just looks at her grandfather. “Next question.”
“Are you two dating?” he asks.
I pfft out, “Absolutely.”
At the same time, Sofia says, “Not really.”
“That’s interesting,” he says, smirking at me, as I turn to glare at Sofia, who doesn’t look back at me.
“So you spent the night,” Casey states, right before he slides a piece of chicken fried steak into his mouth.
I look at him, never once looking away, because then I would be guilty of something. “Oh my God,” Sofia retorts, “you did not just ask him that.”
“Did he or did he not come here last night and leave this morning?” Casey tilts his head to the side.
“Pops,” Sofia hisses out, “you said you would mind your business.”
“Listen, it’s not my fault you have a Ring camera.” He holds up his hands. “And I get reports of who comes and goes.” He smiles at Sofia and then turns his eyes to me.
I look over at Sofia and smirk. “I did,” I tell him. “She’s here, so I’m going to be spending time wherever she is.”